THORPE (A.S.),
an assembly of people, cognate with the Welsh torf (a crowd or troop), Gael. treubh (a tribe), and troupe, French; and then gradually coming to denote a farm or village; e.g. Thorp, in Northamptonshire; Calthorpe (cold village); Langthorpe (long village); Ingelthorpe, Kettlesthorpe, Swansthorpe, Bischopsthorpe (the farm or village of Ingold, Kettle, Sweyn, and the bishop); Nunthorpe (the nun’s village); Raventhorpe (Hrafen’s village); Thorparch, in Yorkshire (the village bridge), on the R. Wharfe; Milnethorpe (the village of the mill); Althorpe (old villages); Basingthorpe (the village of the Basings, a patronymic); Copmanthorpe (of the merchant).
THWAITE (Scand. thveit),
a cleared spot or an isolated piece of land, akin to the Danish tvede, a peninsula; e.g. Harrowthwaite, Finsthwaite, Ormathwaite, Sattersthwaite, places cleared and cultivated by the Scandinavians, whose names they bear; Applethwaite (of apples); Calthwaite (cold clearing); Birkthwaite (of birches); Micklethwaite (great clearing); Crossthwaite, in Cumberland, where St. Kentigern is said to have erected a cross; Lockthwaite (Loki’s clearing).
TOBAR (Gadhelic),
a fountain or well, from the old word doboir, water. Wells and fountains were held in great veneration by the Celts in heathen times, and are the subjects of many traditions in Ireland and Scotland. Many of the early preachers of Christianity established their foundations near these venerated wells, which were the common resorts of the people whom they had come to convert. In this way the new religion became associated in the minds of the converts with their favourite wells, and obtained the names of the saints, by which they are known to this day; e.g. Tobermory (St. Mary’s well), in the Island of Mull; Tobar-na-bhan-thighern (the chieftainess’s well), in Badenoch; Ballintobar (the town of the well), Co. Mayo, now called Tobermore (the great well), which had a well blessed by St. Patrick; Tibbermore or Tippermuir (the great well), in Perthshire; Tobar-nam-buadh, in Skye (the well of virtues); Tipperary, anc. Tiobrad-Arann (the well of the district of Ara); Tipperkevin (St. Kevin’s well); Tipperstown, anc. Baile-an-tobair (the town of the well); Tobercurry (the well of the cauldron); Toberbilly (the well of the old tree); Tobernaclug (the well of the bells, clog). Bells were held sacred by the Irish on account of a certain bell favoured by St. Patrick. Perhaps the rivers Tiber and Tiverone, as well as Tivoli, anc. Tibur, may come from this root.
TOFT, TOT (Scand.),
an enclosure or farm; e.g. Lowestoft, Dan. Luetoft (the enclosure or place of the beacon-fire, which in early times was placed on the promontory where the town stands); Langtoft (long farm); Monk’s Tofts (the monk’s farm), and West Tofts, in Norfolk; Ecclestofts (the church farm buildings), in Berwickshire; Ivetot, anc. Ivonis-tot (the farm of Ivo and Hautot (high farm), in Normandy; Sassetot (the Saxon’s farm); Littletot (little farm); Berguetot (birch farm), in Normandy.
TOM (Gadhelic and Welsh),
a knoll or mound; e.g. Tomintoul (the knoll of the barn), Gael. Tom-an-t-sabhail, Co. Banff; Tomachuraich (the boat-shaped knoll), Inverness-shire; Tom-ma-Chessaig (St. Kessag’s mound), at Callander; Tom-na-faire (the knoll of the watch-tower), on Loch Etive; Tomatin (the knoll of the fire, teine); Tomnacroiche (of the gallows); Tom-da-choill (of the two woods); Tombreck (speckled knoll); Tomgarrow (rough knoll); Tomnaguie (windy knoll), in Ireland; Tom-bar-lwm (the mound of the bare hill); Tommen-y-Bala (the mound of Lake Bala, having been raised as representative of Mount Ararat); Tommen-y-mur (of the rampart).